SOUTH AFRICA

South Africa is home to a racially and culturally diverse population of 49 million people, including 5.6 million people living with HIV.

According to a study conducted by

the South African Department of Health in 2009, the national HIV prevalence rate is 29.4 percent,

with rates ranging from around 17 percent to nearly 40 percent depending on the province.

A sharp rise of multi-drug resistant TB among HIV patients poses a significant threat and has prompted national efforts to integrate treatment for HIV, TB, STIs, and other communicable diseases.

A severe lack of trained medical providers, particularly in rural

areas of the country, also represents a significant challenge to the country’s health system. With support from the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the US
Government team in country, the HIV/AIDS Twinning Center currently manages four partnerships in South Africa, including three university-to-university alliances that focus on strengthening a new bachelor’s program that is preparing Clinical Associates, a new

mid-level cadre of healthcare professionals that is helping to bring skilled care providers to areas of the country that need them most.

(source: CIA World Factbook, November 2011)

Updated November 15, 2011